How Do Radiant Heat Ranges Work?

Electric Ranges

In electric ranges, high voltage electricity runs through a coil. The coil is a resistor, a material designed to resist the flow of electric current. The electricity is turned into heat, which flows out of the coil onto the pot being heated in coil ranges. Some of the electricity also turns into infrared radiation, a type of light below the visible spectrum. When infrared light hits an object such as the pan, it turns into heat and provides additional heating.

Radiant Heat Ranges

The word "radiant" in radiant heat ranges is a misnomer. These should actually be called infrared heat ranges. Radiant heat ranges have a coil, but it's located under a sheet of ceramic glass. The glass insulates the coil, preventing heat from flowing out of it. As a result, the coil gets much hotter than traditional coils. As it gets hotter, it produces more infrared radiation. This infrared can flow through the ceramic glass, but when it hits a pot or pan on the range it turns into heat, cooking the food.

Advantages of Radiant Heat

One of the main advantages of radiant heat ranges is ease of cleaning. Normal electric stoves have exposed coils and drip pans that must be taken out and cleaned. Because a radiant heat range is covered with a smooth ceramic glass layer, it can be easily cleaned with a cloth, making it a bit more convenient. Radiant heat ranges also heat up and cool down very quickly compared to the thicker, bulkier coils of conventional ranges. One disadvantage of radiant ranges is that they don't work well with dishes with curved bottoms. The curve can deflect much of the infrared heat, making the range less efficient.